does sad music just press our empathy button? richard parncutt centre for systematic musicology,...
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Does sad music just press our empathy
button?
Richard ParncuttCentre for Systematic Musicology, University of Graz, Austria
SysMus Graz
4th International Conference on
Music & EmotionGeneva, 12-16 October 2015
Does sad music just press our empathy button?What motivates people to engage with sad music? How can music displaying sadness evoke positive emotion (Gabrielsson, 2002)? If attraction to sad music is universal (Balkwill et al., 2004), we expect an evolutionary explanation - not a cognitive-cultural one (such as Aristotle's catharsis, or allowing negative emotions without negative consequences, Kivy, 1990). Listeners are attracted to music that evokes basic emotions (happiness, anger, fear, surprise, tenderness) due in part to evolutionary drives based on individual survival and reproduction; e.g. angry/fearful music presses our danger/attention button. Attraction to sad music may be driven by dispositional empathy (Vuoskoski & Eerola, Escom, 2015), which promotes group survival. Diverse evidence supports the partial innateness of empathetic responses. Altruistic responses to others’ distress (directed altruism) may be as old as mammals and birds (De Waal, 2008); separation distress has a universal neural foundation (Panksepp et al., 1997). Human empathy is automatic and emotional (Singer et al., 2004). Pain is associated with specific facial expressions (A. C. D. C. Williams, 2002), and spontaneous facial mimicry is largely automatic (Sonnby-Borgström, 2002). A role for empathy in music perception is consistent with the dominance of social emotions (“playful joy, sadness, maternal care, sexual lust, territorial/dominance imperatives”) over non-social, self-preservative emotions (“anger and fear”) in the origin of music (Panksepp, 2009). Specifically, sad music may represent a virtual sad person (Watt & Ash, 1998; Parncutt & Kessler, 2006), which activates an automatic proximal mechanism (Preston & De Waal, 2002, abstract). That can explain why sad music is linked to personality traits openness to experience and empathy (Vuoskoski et al., 2012; Vuoskoski & Eerola, 2012); prolactin (Huron, 2011); and even minor keys (Parncutt, 2014). If music originated in mother-infant bonding (Parncutt, 2009), empathy can explain associations between sad music and nostalgia, peacefulness, and wonder (Vuoskoski et al., 2012)..
Why do people listen to sad music?
AssumptionsSad music in most cultures Widespread motivation to listen to it Evolutionary explanation?
ParadoxHappiness is the “normal” emotion.Happiness allows us to cooperate productively.In our society, we are expected to be happy.Mood regulation tends to promote happiness.
A good theory – in general
Conceptual parsimonyA simple idea that explains a lot
What simple idea can explain our motivation to listen to music expressing all emotions incl. sadness?
Idea: Sad music presses our empathy button
an automatic signal-response mechanism
Empathy is:o an altruistic response to another’s distress o universal (promotes group survival).
Sad music represents a distressed person o the stimuli are similar
Sad music automatically evokes an empathetic response.
Minor keys and negative valenceParncutt (2014)
Possible explanations:o Dissonanceo Alterity o Uncertainty (of root/tonic)o Lower-than-expected pitch
= Signals that a person is sad
Evidencethat sad music presses our empathy button
o Behavior: Personality (Vuoskoski et al., 2012)o “openness to experience” o “empathy”
o Physiology: Hormones (Huron, 2011)o prolactin (eating, mating, ovulation, nursing)o oxytocin (intimacy, sex, childbirth, bonding)
o Introspectiono We like sad music for itself, not its functiono Sad music “touches us”
Is empathy innate?
Psychologyo Human empathy is automatic and emotional (Singer et
al., 2004).
o Pain is associated with specific facial expressions (A. C. D. C. Williams, 2002); and spontaneous facial mimicry is largely automatic (Sonnby-Borgström, 2002).
Physiologyo Directed altruism is as old as mammals and birds (De
Waal, 2008)
o Separation distress has a universal neural foundation (Panksepp et al., 1997).
Subjective experience
An Evolutionary-Ecological-Epiphenomenal Approach
Situation and stimulus
Behavior and physiology
Survival and reproduction
Experience is a mere byproduct of physical processes.
Behavior is about social and environmental interaction,which is constrained by evolution.
Evolutionary-Ecological Approach
Complex conscious cultural emotions are founded on
spontaneous innate responses.
First explain spontaneous responses,
their functions, their origins
Which basic emotions?
Strong universal emotions expressed e.g. in gossip & news media include
o pride, triumph (football)o lust (sex)
Not all basic emotions have universal facial expressions (Ekman)
Ecological-evolutionary theory of basic emotions Part 1: Survival
Situ-ation
Default Individ. threat Group conflict Nourishment
I’m strong-er
I’m weak-er
Victory, suc-cess
Loss, failure
Good food, drink
Bad food, poison
Beha-vior
Coope-rate
Fight Flee Celeb-rate
Reco-ver
Con-sume
Reject
Emo-tion
Happi-ness, joy, flow
Anger, sur-prise
Fear, sur-prise
Pride, tri-umph
Sad-ness, grief
Gust. plea-sure
Dis-gust
Obvious or “just-so story”?
This is incomplete… e.g. could add health and illness
Situation Adult perspective Child perspective
Mating Childcare Dependence Ignorance
Behavior Flirting, sex Satisfy needs
Learn social norms
Acquire skills
Emotion Romantic love, lust, tenderness
Parental love, tenderness
Filial love, awe, tenderness
Curiosity, playfulnessopenness
Ecological-evolutionary theory of basic emotions Part 2: Reproduction
Why listen to sad music?A general answer
Sad music is a basic emotional display.
All such displays motivate others to attend engage
because survival and reproduction are important for everyone.
Why listen to sad music?More specific answers
Why respond to displays of specific basic emotions?
o Happiness we want to be happyo Anger angry people can be dangerouso Fear perhaps we should also be afraido Sadness empathy is an innate response
Or more generally:+ve valence join the party
-ve valence understand the cause
Music as a virtual person
Both people and music can be:• Male or female• Good or evil• Happy or sad etc.(Watt & Ash, 1998)
We respond to music as if it were a person
Music “speaks to us”
Music as a virtual motherThe mother as perceived by the infant (Parncutt, 2009)
Infant perception of mother:awe, wonder, fascination, captivation, beauty
“Sublime” musical emotions:transcendence: magic, enchantment, reverence, divinity
How does strong emotion get into music?
Parncutt (2009)
3rd trimester: emotional connotations of sound-movement patterns
Infancy: motherese
Childhood: play music
Adulthood: ritual
The structure of musical emotion
Prediction: Emotions in music have three components = three virtual people
Two virtual people, interacting now• 1st-person perspective
my own felt emotion• 2nd-person perspective
the other’s displayed emotion
Virtual mother (in long-term implicit memory)
• Infant perspectivetranscendence
Transcendence in music expressing basic emotions
Classical western examples
Happiness J. S. Bach: Italian Concerto, last movementSadness Chopin: Sonata in Bb minor, funeral marchTenderness Mozart: 2nd movements of sonatasAnger Beethoven: 5th symphony, 1st movementFear Stravinsky: Rite of Spring
From this conference:T. Eerola, H.-R. Peltola & J. K. Vuoskoski Structure of emotions in memorable
experiences of sad music
Virtual mother:Sublime
2nd person:Comfort
1st person:Grief
Sad music presses our empathy button
…an automatic signal-response mechanism
Empathy is:o an altruistic response to another’s distress o universal (promotes group survival).
Sad music represents a distressed person o the stimuli are similar
Sad music automatically evokes an empathetic response.